The common denominator is Nico, and I have no idea what that means. But I don’t particularly want to give it up anytime soon. Which means I need him to stop avoiding me. I understand if sex is out of the question—I don’t like it, but I get it. But I can’t handle him not talking to me, so I’m going to have to talk to him. As soon as I’m finished in here, because the longer I put it off, the longer we’re both going to be overthinking—and spiraling never did anyone any good.
But since I have a plan, I can relax a little longer. I let the water ripple across my skin, warm and soothing, tune into the movie, and think about—well, shit.
“Never mind,” I grumble. The water rushes down my body as I stand, but all it does is make me think about Nico’s fingertips dancing over my skin. I wrap a towel around myself and catch a glimpse in the mirror; my cheeks are flushed.
“You have got to get a grip,” I tell myself before turning out the light and marching downstairs.
Except, Nico isn’t down here. His boots are by the door, and the boys are curled up by the fire, clearly drying off. Earl opens one eye and points his nose toward the stairs. Whether he’s telling me his dad is upstairs, or just telling me to leave them alone, I’m not sure, but the cabin is only so big. If he were down here, I’d be able to tell.
My storming around seems a bit dramatic now, so I’m quieter as I go back up. I pass my room, and, sure enough, Nico’s bedroom door is cracked. I raise my hand to knock, but accidentally nudge the door with my elbow as I do. It opens a crack.
And my jaw drops.
Nico is sitting up in bed, completely naked, with one hand wrapped around his cock. The other… He’s reading my Kindle.
What the fuck?
He’s clearly so engrossed in the book that he doesn’t hear me. I lean against the doorframe, my heart pounding, and watch as he draws his fist up and down, his breath ragged and eyes glued to the screen.
He’s a work of art. Which is not an excuse to stand here and watch him like a creep, but I’m mesmerized. He runs his thumb over the head of his cock and shudders, the softest whimper slipping from his lips. I almost echo him. He’s not touching me, but I swear watching him makes the memories of his hands all over me even stronger, and I think I could come apart at the seams just like this. But touching him would be better.
“You know, if you wanted some alone time with my Kindle, you could’ve just asked. You didn’t have to be sofrosty with me this morning,” I say, and he jumps. He drops my Kindle on the bed and looks up at me with a distinct “oh shit” expression.
“This isn’t what it looks like.” I’ve watched this man chop wood without breaking a sweat, so whatever he’s reading must be good to have him this out of breath.
“It looks like you’re reading on my Kindle while jacking off.”
He closes his eyes, pinching his lips together, before sighing. “Ah. Yeah. I guess it’s exactly what it looks like, then.”
His cheeks are crimson, but he makes no move to cover himself.
It’s a bad idea to cross the room and lie across the bed. I came here to talk, not get distracted. But I didn’t expect to find him naked, and I’m only human, for fuck’s sake. So, crossing the room and lying on the bed is exactly what I do.
Nico opens his eyes, and the gaze that falls on me is hungry. Desperate. Tortured.
“So,” I begin, dragging my eyes from him to my discarded Kindle. “What are you reading?”
12
NICO
Ican’t tell if I’m in heaven or hell right now.
She’s wearing a towel and nothing else, and she did nothing to stop it from parting when she lay down. There’s a strip of her torso exposed, from between her breasts, down her stomach, her belly button. I’m desperate to pounce on her, to run my tongue down it, tasting every inch of her. This is exactly why I’ve been avoiding her since I got off the phone this morning. I can’t look at her without wanting to touch her.
It’s not just in the sense that I spent the whole morning wanting to tear her clothes off. I wanted her to snuggle into me while she drank her tea and picked at the toast I made her. I wanted to walk up behind her when she was rinsing her cup and wrap my arms around her, holding her tight to my chest. I wanted to drop to my knees and tie her boot laces for her when she ran out to her car to get something she left in the trunk.
And yeah, I wanted to tear her clothes off. She wore pants this morning, and I discovered that her bare legs were never the problem. I am. Because I want her just as muchwhen she’s wearing sweatpants as I do when she’s wearing tiny shorts with the express purpose of tempting me. I’ve never felt like this about anyone. I’m completely out of my depth here.
Este is looking at me, and I realize I’ve missed something.
“Huh?”
She laughs softly. “I said: What are you reading?”
Shit. I considered telling her last night, before we drifted off, that I’d been reading some of the books I spotted on her Kindle. But we fell asleep, and I couldn’t exactly mention it while avoiding her this morning. “It’s a long story,” I say.
She shifts so one half of the towel completely falls away. Fuck. “We’re stuck here, Nico. We have nothing but time.”
